PASSAGE TO KARTARPUR

HOLIEST OF SHRINES

• Located on the banks of the Ravi and originally known as Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara in Pakistan’s Punjab province is among the holiest shrines for the Sikhs
• The gurdwara was built to commemorate the site where Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikh religion, settled after his missionary work and spent 18 years until his death in 1539
• Later, when the shrine was repeatedly ravaged by floods, the Maharaja of Patiala, Bhupinder Singh, the grandfather of CM Capt Amarinder Singh, got it reconstructed at a cost of Rs 1.35 lakh in 1920
• The shrine was closed to people coming from across the border after Partition in 1947
• It was opened to pilgrims after repairs and restoration in 1999, and Sikh jathas have been visiting the shrine regularly since 

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What’s Unique about Integrated Check Post

• Land Ports Authority of India, tasked with construction of Integrated Check Post, has agreed to a proposal by local MLA Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa to depict Guru Nanak Dev’s teachings and Sikh history through murals
• The idea to have a ‘Darshani Deodi’ near the ICP has also found favour
• Immigration, customs and security checks will be done in the ICP
• Paintings revealing history and culture of towns located on the banks of the Ravi, including Chamba, Basholi, Sialkot, Kalanaur and Ajnala, will also be hung
• ICP, a multi-storeyed monolith when completed, ‘will act as an epitome of faith, sacrifice, and divinity’. Final inspection of the airport-like passenger terminal with over 50 immigration counters will be held on October 31
• There will also be paintings portraying Akbar’s coronation in Kalanaur, Greek invaders crossing the Ravi, Shiv Temple in Kalanaur, Akbar making Lahore his capital, founding of Amritsar by Guru Ramdas, rise of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, declaration of Pooran Swaraj and Jawaharlal Nehru unfurling the ‘Tiranga’ on the banks of the Ravi in December 1929